Over the Hedge: Hammy Goes Nuts! Review

As expected from a licensed game, Over the Hedge: Hammy Goes Nuts features several prominent characters from the computer-animated movie. Static pictures of the characters are shown during the story text portions, along with animated characters used during the gameplay sections. As expected, the player is in control of Hammy, the hyperactive squirrel. Disappointingly, the character animation loops are fairly standard, with a quirky little idle animation that makes it look like Hammy has the hiccups.

Hopefully the player is more interested in playing the game than watching the character animations. Sadly, the background art and in-game objects aren

The game features chirpy little tunes, which are adequate for most purposes, but which also become repetitive. The game also includes the standard sound effects for a golf ball bouncing off of various surfaces, and overall the sound and music seem very ordinary. There are definitely games where I get excited about the sound design, but this isn

The controls are fairly straightforward. During the first part of a level, the D-pad controls Hammy

Now that I

Over the Hedge: Hammy Goes Nuts (GBA) has a number of different modes, including the traditional story-mode as well as hotseat multiplayer support. The story-mode lets the player go back and replay any completed levels, and there are awards and trophies for completing the mini-golf levels in as few strokes as possible. Along with the awards, the player will earn points that can be traded in to unlock additional characters for multiplayer. However, the story itself is fairly uninteresting, and there are much better golf games available for the GBA, meaning that the movie license is the only thing that really adds much value to the game.

Ron Burke is the Editor in Chief for Gaming Trend. Currently living in Fort Worth, Texas, Ron is an old-school gamer who enjoys CRPGs, action/adventure, platformers, music games, and has recently gotten into tabletop gaming.
Ron is also a fourth degree black belt, with a Master's rank in Matsumura Seito Shōrin-ryū, Moo Duk Kwan Tang Soo Do, Universal Tang Soo Do Alliance, and International Tang Soo Do Federation. He also holds ranks in several other styles in his search to be a well-rounded fighter.
Ron has been married to Gaming Trend Editor, Laura Burke, for 21 years. They have three dogs - Pazuzu (Irish Terrier), Atë, and Calliope (both Australian Kelpie/Pit Bull mixes).